Favorite Teams

Baylor running back Lache Seastrunk (25) reacts to a touchdown against Iowa State during the second half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Oct. 19, 2013, in Waco, Texas. (AP Photo/The Waco Tribune-Herald, Rod Aydelotte)

Here are four downs for your Wednesday morning, highlighting the biggest midweek stories in college football:

1st Down: Separating the men from the boys

Some teams won't have to wait until Saturday to know if their title hopes will survive the weekend, with No. 10 Oklahoma (7-1, 4-1 Big 12) squaring off against offensive juggernaut No. 6 Baylor (7-0, 4-0 Big 12) on Thursday in Waco, Texas. Waco hasn't seen a contest between two top-10 teams since 1965, making Thursday's game the biggest thing to come to town in a long time.

Thinking Baylor is just a flash in the pan? ESPN's Mark Schlabach doesn't think so, thanks to coach Art Briles. After suffering unimaginable tragedies in his personal life, Briles adopted the underdog role that he now uses to fuel the Bears' fire on gamedays, writes Schlabach:

At nearly every stop in his coaching career, from West Texas high schools to the University of Houston to Baylor, Briles has somehow molded perennial losers into winners. His family, close friends, former players and assistant coaches say Briles has an extraordinary ability to persuade others into believing that anything is possible, even for football programs that have never won.

"I was blown away by his ability to instill confidence in his players and the people he's around," said Texas Tech coach Kliff Kingsbury, who played quarterback for the Red Raiders when Briles was an assistant there from 2000 to 2003. "He always made you feel like you were 10 feet tall and bulletproof."

Oregon running back DeAnthony Thomas, middle, turns the corner against UCLA defenders Anthony Barr, left, and Jordan Zumwalt during the first half of an NCAA college football game in Eugene, Ore., Saturday, Oct. 26, 2013. (AP Photo/Don Ryan)

• Also squaring off Thursday will be a pair of top-5 teams fighting for superiority in the Pac-12 and the inside track to the top of the BCS standings. No. 5 Stanford (7-1, 5-1 Pac-12) welcomes No. 3 Oregon (8-0, 5-0 Pac-12) to Palo Alto in a contest that will decide who's the best in the west.

The Ducks have scored at least 42 points in every game this season, but were limited to 14 points in last season's overtime loss to the Cardinal. Oregon running back De'Anthony Thomas is ready to answer for last year's letdown, and stirred the pot a bit with his expectations for the Ducks offense this time around. From CBSSports.com's Chip Patterson:

"I feel we are a better team, just a new generation of players," [running back De'Anthony] Thomas told GoDucks.com. "We've got a lot of guys that can contribute to the offense and that's what makes this offense so dynamic."

Thomas was then asked if he thought Stanford could hold the Ducks offense to 14 points -- Oregon's total from the 2012 loss.

"I don't think so," Thomas replied. "I feel like this team, we should at least put up 40."

• The annual (and sometimes semiannual) gift to college football that is LSU-Alabama is nearly upon us. No. 1 Alabama (8-0, 5-0 SEC) will play host to No. 13 LSU (7-2, 3-2 SEC) Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium. The Crimson Tide are healthy and so are the Tigers, and as usual, there's more than just bragging rights on the line.

Watch Gary Laney of Advance Digital, Jim Kleinpeter of NOLA.com and Michael Casagrande of the Alabama Media Group discuss which players they think will have the biggest impact on Saturday's grudge match:

2nd Down: New AD at Texas

Steve Patterson is the new athletic director at the University of Texas, the school announced Tuesday. Patterson previously held the same position at Arizona State, where he made great strides in just two years: (via USAToday.com):

"Steve Patterson emerged as the perfect candidate to build on Texas' athletic success and DeLoss Dodds' legacy," Texas president Bill Powers said in a statement. "Steve helped build an NBA championship team and brought the Super Bowl game to Houston. Far more important, he's run a winning program at Arizona State that places students first and is committed to their lifelong success."

Patterson will be tasked with deciding what to do with coach Mack Brown, who has over-promised and under-delivered since the Longhorns' national championship berth in 2009.

Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer watches from the sideline during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Purdue in West Lafayette, Ind., Saturday, Nov. 2, 2013. Ohio State defeated Purdue 56-0. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

3rd Down: Ohio State needs help

Despite having not lost a single game during coach Urban Meyer's 21-game tenure in Columbus, the Buckeyes aren't a shoo-in for a trip to Pasadena in January even if they run the table yet again. Probation kept undefeated Ohio State out of the title discussion a year ago and this season, being undefeated just might not be enough, writes ESPN.com's Gene Wojciechowski:

The Buckeyes can only do so much. They play in a conference that, for the moment, lacks national football respect. And their nonconference schedule (Buffalo, San Diego State, Cal and FCS-member Florida A&M) didn't do them any favors.

So they need to keep winning games by cartoon-funny numbers. They need to remind everyone that they're in the top 10 nationally in scoring and scoring defense, eighth in rushing yards. They need to mention that few backfields are better than the one that features Braxton Miller and Carlos Hyde. They can point to Meyer's 21-0 record at Ohio State.

In the end, the Buckeyes need help. They need a combo platter of upsets involving Bama, Oregon, FSU and maybe even Baylor. They need the poll voters and BCS computers to fall in love with all things scarlet and gray.

4th Down: Bottom-heavy Big Ten

A big part of the reason No. 4 Ohio State (9-0, 5-0 Big Ten) is looking for help with its national championship hopes is the relative incompetencyof most of the rest of the Big Ten. Besides the Buckeyes, only No. 17 Michigan State (8-1, 5-0 Big Ten) and No. 24 Wisconsin (6-2, 4-1 Big Ten) are currently ranked. As a result, the conference is struggling to fill its eight reserved bowl spots, writes Michael Marot of the Associated Press:

But with only four weeks left in the regular season, the Big Ten is looking at the possibility of coming up short in postseason play again -- even before the bowl lineups are announced. With eight bowl tie-ins, six qualifiers and Iowa on the cusp, the last available spot will have to be filled by one of three teams that are a combined 1-12 in league play: Illinois, Indiana or Northwestern.

Just how bad are things for the bottom-feeders of the Big Ten? So bad that Purdue (1-7, 0-4 Big Ten) hasn't run a play in the red zone since September 28. That was four games ago for the Boilermakers, who have been outscored 114-7 over their last three contests.